Asterocampa leilia
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Asterocampa leilia, the Empress Leilia, Leilia hackberry butterfly or desert hackberry, is a species of butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. Adults are brownish orange, with white and black spots on the bottom of the wings. The length of the wings is 1.5 to 2 inches (38 to 51 mm).
The species can be found in the south-western United States, including Arizona and Texas, as well as Mexico. Adults feed on dung, sap and rotten fruit. In very rare cases the species will feed on nectar. They live in canyons, streamsides, thorn scrubs, and washes. Males of the species will wait near their food plants for females to appear. Larvae feed on hackberry. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big Bend National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Phoenix | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Monterrey | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 4 | San Antonio | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Empress Leilia sighting in Mesa on a given day, based on 17 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 110th most-seen of the 232 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report an Empress Leilia in Mesa on a given day, against under 5% in May, July–August and November–March, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Empress Leilia sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 4 cities where we can rate Empress Leilia sightings, Mesa has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Phoenix (United States, under 5%) and Monterrey (México, under 5%).
Same family: Nymphalidae
The closest relatives of the Empress Leilia that you can see in Mesa (family Nymphalidae, Brush-footed Butterflies) are Queen (about 30%), Monarch (about 20%) and Painted Lady (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Empress Leilia is recorded against all the insects logged in Mesa (17 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
